#001: Natures Calling...

I love nature, whether it be the leafless trees swaying in the Autumn winds or the cackling sounds of the squirrels from behind the bushes. Over the years, I've begun to appreciate nature and it's "natural beauty". As you could probably tell, I was overly excited then I seen brands like Dolce & Gabbana and Valentino take inspiration from that.

Despite having the nature concept running through each collection, they both appear polar opposites, for example, Valentino took a more mature 18th century oil painting approach to the concept as where Dolce & Gabbana took a more playful, fairytale-like approach. 

 

The two images above are from the incredible collection from Valentino. Despite the collection presented is a ready-to-wear collection, the technique and craftsmanship used throughout is at couture standard; and could easily pass off as a couture collection. I adore the techniques used throughout, for example; both images above feature hand stitched birds. Perfectly so, the second image to the right of the blue cape mimics the motion of the wings of the animals themselves. I personally adore this collection, and will probably come under one of my top 3 collections from the House of Valentino. Maria & Pierpaolo, you have clearly out-done yourselves. 

Dolce & Gabbana, you are no different. Continuing on the theme of the Men's Autumn/Winter collection is beyond perfect. Most of the pieces like the blue dress above looks very "crafty", as in something your grandmother would create for a new born's quilt. It's quirky; it's fun; and it's a little ugly. So ugly we want it. I really admire the storytelling on the garments - almost pulled from a children's storytelling book. The use of the lovable animals is beyond cute and will definitely transfer perfectly onto the high street come autumn. You can already see the blue garment on a pretty girl's dress from Next.

As soon as the first leaf falls from the trees in autumn, nature will HOPEFULLY take over. Let's hope it opens the eyes of people and maybe we could save a few million animals, right?

Eamonn Collins